Thoughts of a Civil War Author

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The first draft was finally completed about a month ago and I was ready to finish revising and getting it off to my editor. What campaign next, I thought. My editor, Ted Savas, said “not so fast.” We discussed ideas for the remainder of the war and he made a good point. Why have North Anna and Cold Harbor as a separate volume? Combine them with the Spotsylvania volume and go up to 144 maps (instead of the 110 that I had been anticipating for just that one campaign).

So, I am hard at work finishing this volume. I am finishing up the North Anna fights and will soon move south with the two armies.

Good news on a slightly different front– Ted indicates that he will probably start editing the Fredericksburg volume soon.

My fifth map book is finally out: The Maps of the Wilderness. It follows in the footsteps of the Maps of First Bull Run, Maps of Antietam, Maps of Gettysburg, and Maps of Bristoe Station/Mine Run.

This one runs 324 pages and contains 24 maps sets with 120 original full-page color maps. The book begins with the armies in winter quarters. This section covers the changes in the armies, particularly the arrival of U.S. Grant. The action really begins on May 2, when Grant finalizes his plans for the Army of the Potomac.

The action covers the movement of the Union army through the Wilderness and Lee’s response, leading to the early encounter on May 5. The fighting along the Orange Turnpike and the Orange Plank Road is covered in detail.

Then I cover the actions, or inactions, of the Confederates during the night of May 5-6. The latter opens with a massive attack along the Plank Road and this is detailed in many maps, as is the arrival of Longstreet’s First Corps, its flank attack, and the final attacks on the Union works along Brock Road.

John Gordon’s flank attack is also covered in some detail as it had so much potential and created so much havoc.

A number of cavalry actions are also covered in this volume. The book ends with the armies moving toward Spotsylvania Court House on May 7.

I believe that the book turned out quite well. In future posts I will detail specific sections of the book.

Like so many others, my version of a “dream” weekend is spending it at a battlefield. This upcoming Labor Day Weekend will be very special, as I will be at two battlefields to sign books. The schedule is:

I have been remiss in not posting more frequently to this blog, but life keeps getting in the way. I am closing in on retirement within the next two years, so I should have more time to post.

I am happy to announce that my Maps of the Wilderness book is now at the printer and is slated to be out by January, 2016.

It was a very difficult book to write, as the actions were so confused and confusing. I think I did a pretty good job of accurately capturing the action. Several individuals really helped me in my endeavors, including Greg Mertz, Kris White, and Phill Greenwaldt.

After completing the Wilderness book, I got right to work on the Maps of the Fredericksburg Campaign, and I am pleased to report that it has also been completed. You probably won’t see it until early 2017.

Many people ask me why I get up at 3:00 a.m. every morning to work on my Civil War map books. I can’t really explain it, but I am on a mission to map every campaign in the Eastern Theater of the Civil War. I have a good start– four campaigns (First Bull Run, Antietam, Gettysburg, Bristoe/Mine Run) are published and one is with Ted Savas, my editor. The greatest satisfaction comes from meeting readers who have enjoyed/benefited from my efforts. Not so great are the individuals who want to nitpick about this topic or that. I never engage them, but merely smile and say that there are many different perspectives and no one will ever know for sure.

I walked the fields of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, and Spotsylvania many times while mapping the campaigns of the Eastern Theater of the Civil War. Studying the Civil War is my passion and to date, I wrote ten books because of it. The time that I devote to my studies of the Civil War, however; is limited by my “day” job as President of the College of Southern Maryland. This also restricts the time I can devote to nonprofit organizations. I felt compelled to make the time when the opportunity was presented to become a member of the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust (CVBT) Board.

During battlefield visits, I am dismayed by the destruction of these sacred sites. Standing at the location of the mill race, now Kenwood Avenue in Fredericksburg, it is impossible to see the ground the men in blue traversed to ultimately be slaughtered before Marye’s Heights. The town of Fredericksburg has changed over the years, as the ever growing population engulfed those sacred grounds. The same is true at the Wilderness battlefield, where a housing development around Grant Lake has sprung up on the ground that saw very heavy fighting during May 5 and 6, 1864. On May 5, Henry Heth’s Division’s left flank valiantly held off charge after charge of an overwhelming number of Union troops. Gen. Wadsworth’s division traversed this ground on its journey to crush the Confederate defensive line on the early morning of May 6 and was the scene of heavy fighting as Longstreet’s men appeared later that morning. Many other troops thrashed their way through the thickets here. However, access to these sacred grounds is barred because of the private residences that dot the landscape.

The heroic efforts of the Civil War Trust and the Gettysburg Foundation are celebrated for preserving historic sites. Less well-known is the CVBT, which concentrates its efforts in preserving the Fredericksburg-Chancellorsville- Wilderness- Spotsylvania battlefields. It is a big job as the population of Fredericksburg and its surrounding counties has increased 120 percent since 1970, four times the rate of growth of the rest of Virginia. The organization can count many successes over the years, including the preservation of over 1,000 acres of sacred land. They not only preserve the land itself but also act as advocates for battlefield preservation in general.

While the relationship between the Gettysburg Foundation and the rangers at the Gettysburg National Military Park are renowned and applauded, the relationship between the CVBT and the personnel at the Fredericksburg-Spotsylvania National Military Park complexes is equally strong. The synergy has helped strengthen both entities.

For me, writing a check is not enough. I need to give back to those men who made the ultimate sacrifice by contributing my time and knowledge. That’s one of the reasons I write books and why I have decided to join a committed band of individuals who have such a passion for our nation’s heritage. There is much more work to be done and it is my hope that more people will lend their support to this outstanding organization. Please take a moment to visit the CVBT website (http://www.cvbt.org).

I always look forward to Gettysburg’s Sacred Trust program. I usually am asked to give a presentation on Gettysburg, and then I sign books for awhile. This year was a bit different, as they had plenty of speakers, so I just signed book for awhile on July 4. I met some great people from all over the U.S. They all had one thing in common– a passion for Gettysburg. I am always so pleased to learn that many people carry my Maps of Gettysburg around the battlefield. One visitor also mentioned that a ranger at the Antietam battlefield was carrying around my book during a tour. That’s why I am writing these books. Not only do I learn so much about a campaign, I am able to share my new insights with others. Few Civil War historians make a ton of money on their projects– they do it for the passion to learn and to share.

What I found so odd this year was that the vast majority of presentations (21 out 26) were not on Gettysburg. I may be wrong, but I think most people go to Gettysburg to learn about Gettysburg and the same is true of Sacred Trust. Check out the list of presentations: http://www.gettysburgfoundation.org/149/sacred-trust-event-schedule

Every year, the Gettysburg Foundation hosts a series of speakers on Gettysburg. They put up a big tent behind the Visitors Center and lots of chairs. I was surprised to see so many of them occupied when I gave my talk, because it was at the end of the day (July 6, 2013). It is a free event and is coming up again this year.

To see me talk about the best and worst generals of Gettysburg, check out this link: http://vimeo.com/72363918. Go to my Resources link to see the entire list of speakers and their videos.

I will add my list of the best and worst generals here in a couple of days.

As many readers of Civil War history know, I have been devoting my time to preparing map books of the major campaigns of the Eastern Theater. The Maps of Gettysburg was the first book in the series, followed by books on First Bull Run, Antietam, and Bristoe Station/Mine Run.

I am now completing a book on the Wilderness Campaign. It will contain 118 full-color maps and accompanying text and is being readied to head over to the publisher. This was a very tough campaign to map. Everyone who reads about the Civil War will roll their eyes when they hear about the Wilderness Campaign. Fighting in dense thickets does not lend itself to clarity and I certainly found that out.

Despite the confusion, I believe that I have crafted a book that will really help the reader sort out what happened in those thickets. I certainly have a better sense of it. When I walk around Saunders Field and the Tapp Farm, I have an enhanced appreciation of what these young men had to endure. Sections of the battlefield still contain some thick vegetation, so you can get a sense of what it was like back in May, 1864.

It was a fight where Lee and his ill-regarded lieutenants, Richard Ewell and A. P. Hill, did fairly well. It was fascinating to piece together what seemed to be complete victory by Winfield Hancock’s troops on the morning of May 6, but then transitioned to wholesale defeat just a few hours later, and to see how Lee’s reactions changed from panic to euphoria during this time.

I am not sure when the book will be published, but I am hoping it will be in the fall of 2014.